ty came home late one afternoon with a
plump insect in his bill he found Chippy, Jr., blocking the
doorway. His head peered through the round opening. And his face
wore a worried expression.

"Hurry up!" said Rusty Wren. "I want to come in."

And at that Chippy, Jr., began to struggle to get out. But he
couldn't move either forward or back.

"Be spry!" Rusty said impatiently. "Don't keep me waiting, boy!"

Chippy, Jr., looked actually frightened.

"I'm stuck fast!" he cried. "I can't move either way!"

XVII

HELP! HELP!

"Help! help!" Rusty Wren called loudly to his wife.

"What's wrong?" she screamed. Since she was inside the house, and
Rusty was outside, with Chippy, Jr., blocking the doorway, of
course she was alarmed--for she couldn't see her husband.

"This boy's stuck fast in our door," Rusty cried. "And you must
help me move him."

"Very well!" she answered in a frightened tone. "But if we can't
stir him, I don't know what we'll do." And she began to shriek.

"Don't worry!" Rusty shouted. "Just say when you're ready."

"I'm ready now," she replied.

"One, two, three--all together!" Rusty Wren commanded. And he
seized the head of Chippy, Jr., and began pulling as hard as he
knew how.

Chippy, Jr., at once let out a frightened cry.

"Stop! stop!" he begged. "I don't know what the trouble is, but I
feel as if I should break in two!"

"Well! well!" exclaimed Rusty Wren. And then to his wife he said:
"Were you pushing or pulling?"

"Pulling!" she explained. "I was tugging on his coat-tails."

"Ah! That was the trouble," Rusty told poor Chippy, Jr., who looked
quite distressed. "I was trying to pull you out; and she was trying
to pull you in. But you mustn't mind a little mistake like that."

"Very well!" said Chippy, Jr., meekly. "But please don't do it
again!"

"Now----" Rusty directed his wife, so that she might understand
clearly what was required of her--"now you must push while I pull."

All their efforts, however, failed to move the unfortunate Chippy,
Jr. He remained wedged tightly in the doorway. And at last Rusty
declared that they might as well stop trying to get him through it.

"What you must do now," he directed his wife, "is to pull on
Chippy, Jr.'s, coat-tails, while I push against his head. And in
that way we may be able to clear our doorway."

That plan worked better. In a short time Mr. Chippy's unlucky son
suddenly slipped backward, knocking Mrs. Rusty Wren fl